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Special Topics in Criminal Justice (CJ651):

The Critical Analysis of Urban Crime in America

Course Number: 651

Course Title: Special Topics in Criminal Justice

Catalog Description: This course covers variable topics in an area of criminal justice not part of the established department curriculum. Can be repeated when the topic changes.

Prerequisites: Admission to the School of Graduate Studies or permission of the instructor

Credit Hours: 3

Semester: Spring 2020

Professor: Dr. Monica Bixby Radu

Email: mradu@semo.edu

Phone: (573)-651-5045

Office Location: Brandt Hall, Room 325

Office Hours: Wednesday, 9:00 a.m. to noon

Alternative Contact Information: Please contact Dr. Christopher Bradley, Department of Criminal Justice & Sociology Chairperson with questions, comments, or requests regarding this course or the program.

Course Learning Outcomes: 1. Students will be able to demonstrate an understanding of contemporary social

problems and social issues presented in course material. 2. Students will be able to locate relevant literature suitable to the topic of the course. 3. Students will be able to apply and critique theoretical concepts in a practical framework

that address contemporary social problems and social issues.

Course-specific Required Materials: • Sexed Work: Gender, Race, and Resistance in a Brooklyn Drug Market (1997) by Lisa

Maher • Code of the Street: Decency, Violence, and the Moral Life of the Inner City (1999) by

Elijah Anderson • From the War on Poverty to the War on Crime: The Making of Mass Incarceration in

America (2016) by Elizabeth Hinton • Uneasy Peace: The Great Crime Decline, the renewal of City Life, and the Next War on

Violence (2018) by Patrick Sharkey

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Additional readings and videos will be available on Moodle. Course Content:

1. Sociological and criminological approaches to understanding urban crime (12 hours) 2. Social contexts and urban crime: neighborhoods, communities, and schools (12 hours) 3. Intersectionality, diversity, and urban crime (12 hours) 4. Critiquing classical and contemporary research on urban crime (9 hours)

Grading Scale and Policies:

A = 90-100% B = 80 – 89.9% C = 70 – 79.9% F = < 70%

Late Work Policy: In this course, I will not accept late work. All late assignments will receive a zero. I have been somewhat flexible with late work in the past. Unfortunately, this approach has been taken advantage of, which is why this semester I am implementing a strict no late work policy. If you have an extenuating circumstance (e.g., military service, maternity/paternity leave, death of a loved one, etc.), please discuss your situation with me before anything is due, so we can co-create accommodations and solutions. I do not accept late work for the following reasons:

• Late policies encourage students to disregard the given deadline for the assignment. • Students discuss with their peers if they can turn in assignments late, which encourages

other students to ask for extensions for their work. • Accepting late work is unfair to the students who turn their work in on-time. • A hard deadline helps prepare students for their future educational and career goals. • It is impossible to identify which justifications for late work are “real” and which ones

are not, and it is not my responsibility to determine the value and truthfulness of an excuse for submitting late work.

Basis of Evaluation for Graduate Students Class Participation (5 online-based discussion forums) 10%

Exams (3 essay-based exams on Moodle) 30%

Reflection, Application, & Critique Papers (3 papers) 30%

Final Paper & Presentation (Publication-ready conceptual/theoretical paper & conference-like presentation at the end of the semester)

30%

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Technology: To complete all assignments within this course, you will be required to have access to the computer and the internet. For information follow this link, http://www.semo.edu/it/helpdesk/comprecommendations.html

Moodle: The Moodle learning management system used by the University is most compatible with Mozilla Firefox or Google Chrome.

Final Exam Schedule: Online during final exam week, due date TBA

Track Your Progress on Moodle: For this course, you will be able to track your progress on Moodle. Once you have completed a lesson or assignment you are able to mark that you have completed it by checking a box in Moodle. This tool is helpful for assisting students stay up-to-date with course material and assignments.

Email Response Time and Feedback on Assignments: Please feel free to email me any questions you may have throughout the semester. My goal is to respond to each email within 24 hours, Monday-Friday. On the weekends, you can expect a response within 24-48 hours. Reviewing my comments on your discussion boards is important, as the goal of my feedback is to help you improve for future assignments. Therefore, you can expect to receive my feedback within five days of the assignment due date. All feedback will be posted in the gradebook on Moodle.

Academic Honesty: Southeast Missouri State University expects all students, faculty and staff to operate in an honest and ethical manner. Academic dishonesty is a very serious offense because it undermines the value of your education and the education of others. Students who engage in academic dishonesty face significant penalties. Forms of academic dishonesty include, but are not limited to, plagiarism, cheating, contract cheating, misrepresentation, and other actions you take. Some of these are defined below:

• Plagiarism means passing off someone else’s work as your own, whether it is intentional or unintentional.

• Cheating includes copying from another person or source of information to meet the requirements of a task.

• Contract cheating is paying someone else or a company to do your work. • Misrepresentation means you are posing as someone else or someone else is posing as

you to complete a task. • Collusion means working with one or more people to cheat. If you help someone cheat

or plagiarize you will face the same penalties.

For more information, visit the Responsible Redhawks Code of Conduct http://www.semo.edu/responsibleredhawks/code-of-conduct.html or the Faculty Handbook Section (D) on Academic Honesty http://www.semo.edu/facultysenate/handbook/5d.html

Accessibility: Southeast Missouri State University and Disability Services are committed to making every reasonable educational accommodation for students who identify as people with disabilities. Many services and accommodations which aid a student’s educational experience

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are available for students with various disabilities. Students are responsible for contacting Disability Services to register and access accommodations. Accommodations are implemented on a case by case basis. For more information, visit http://www.semo.edu/ds/ or contact Disability Services at 573-651-5927.

Civility: Your university experience is purposely designed to introduce you to new ideas, help you think effectively, develop good communication skills, evaluate information successfully, distinguish among values and make sound judgements. Doing this well requires respectful and courteous discussion among and between students and the instructor. Together, we must create a space where we acknowledge and respect others have different experiences, perspectives and points of view. Disagreements are likely. Mutual respect for one another and a willingness to listen are important. Remember, you are responsible for your behavior and actions. There is a no tolerance policy on bullying or harassment of any kind. Additional information on student conduct may be found at: http://www.semo.edu/pdf/stuconduct-code-conduct.pdf?ver=1.0 and http://www.semo.edu/pdf/Conduct_Faculty_Resource_Guide.pdf

Mandatory Reporting: I will keep information you share with me confidential to the best of my ability, but as a professor I am legally required to share information about sexual misconduct and crimes I learn about to make our campus and community safe for everyone.

Student Success: This course uses SupportNET, Southeast’s student success network, to improve communication between students, faculty and staff on campus. You’ll get emails through SupportNET with information about resources or concerns. Please read these emails—they are sent to help you succeed! You can access SupportNET through your portal, Moodle or directly at supportnet.semo.edu to see any academic alerts, ask for help and to access resources to support your success at Southeast.

Interacting with Others: “Netiquette” Expectations for this Course In this course, the discussion boards allow you to interact with your classmates. It is important to keep in mind proper online etiquette or “netiquette” when engaging in online discussions. Please keep these netiquette expectations in mind:

1. Think before you post. Unlike in a face-to-face course, you cannot use facial expressions or voice intonations to convey emotion or intent; therefore, it is imperative that you carefully re-read your comments to ensure your message comes across the way you intend it and will not be taken as offensive by another student. Also, please keep in mind that everything you post is recorded for everyone to see and can be reviewed later.

2. Be polite and mindful of your tone. You should address each other by name and be mindful of your written tone. You should interact online politely, just as you would be expected to do in a physical classroom environment. Sarcasm rudeness and writing in all capital letters (shouting) should be avoided.

3. Respect diversity. Online courses bring students together from all over the world. Recognize that others may have different cultural backgrounds and skill levels with writing in the English language. Treat others with respect, regardless of race, gender, religious beliefs, and sexual orientation. Additionally, be respectful when opinions differ

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from your own; disagree in a polite manner.

CJ651: Special Topics in Criminal Justice Tentative Weekly Schedule for Spring 2020

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Week, Course Content, and Hours Example of Course Material

Week 1: Sociological & criminological approaches to understanding urban crime in America

(3 hours)

Hipp, John R., and Yates, Daniel (2011). Ghettos, Thresholds, and Crime: Does Concentrated Poverty Really Have an

Accelerating Increasing Effect on Crime? Criminology, 49(4): 955–990

Papachristos, Andrew V., Hureau, David M., and Braga, Anthony A. (2013). The Corner and the Crew: The Influence of

Geography and Social Networks on Gang Violence. American Sociological

Review, 78(3): 417–447.

Week 2: Sociological & criminological approaches to understanding urban crime in America

(3 hours)

Introduction & Chapters 1-3 in Code of the Street (Anderson 1999)

Week 3: Sociological & criminological approaches to understanding urban crime in America

(3 hours)

Chapters 4-6 in Code of the Street (Anderson 1999)

Week 4: Sociological & criminological approaches to understanding urban crime in America

(3 hours)

Chapter 7 & Conclusion in Code of the Street (Anderson 1999)

Week 5: Social contexts and urban crime: neighborhoods, communities, and schools

(3 hours)

Chapters 1-3 in Sexed Work (Maher 1997)

Week 6: Social contexts and urban crime: neighborhoods, communities, and schools

(3 hours)

Chapters 4-6 in Sexed Work (Maher 1997)

Week 7: Social contexts and urban crime: neighborhoods, communities, and schools

(3 hours)

Chapters 7 and 8 in Sexed Work (Maher 1997)

Week 8: Social contexts and urban crime: neighborhoods, communities, and schools

(3 hours)

Introduction & Chapters 1-3 in From the War on Poverty (Hinton 2016)

Week 9: Intersectionality and diversity (3 hours)

Chapters 4-7 in From the War on Poverty (Hinton 2016)

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Week 10: Intersectionality and diversity (3 hours)

Chapters 8 & 9 in From the War on Poverty (Hinton 2016)

Week 11: Intersectionality and diversity (3 hours)

Part I: The New American City in Uneasy Peace by Sharkey (2018)

Week 12: Intersectionality and diversity (3 hours)

Part II: The Benefits of the Crime Decline in Uneasy Peace by Sharkey (2018)

Week 13: Critiquing classical and contemporary research on urban crime in America

(3 hours)

Part III: The Challenge of Violence and Urban Inequality in Uneasy Peace by

Sharkey (2018)

Week 14: Critiquing classical and contemporary research on urban crime in America

(3 hours)

Browning, Christopher R., Feinberg, Seth L. and Dietz, Robert (2004). The Paradox

of Social Organization: Networks, Collective Efficacy, and Violent Crime in

Urban Neighborhoods. Social Forces, 83(2): 503–534.

Johnson, Lallen T., and Kane, Robert

J. (2016). Deserts of Disadvantage: The Diffuse Effects of Structural

Disadvantage on Violence in Urban Communities. Crime and Delinquency:1–

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Week 15: Critiquing classical and contemporary research on urban crime in America

(3 hours)

Kubrin, Charis E., and Weitzer, Ronald (2003). Retaliatory Homicide: Concentrated Disadvantage

and Neighborhood Culture. Social Problems, 50(2): 157–180.

Kirk, David S., and Papachristos, Andrew V. (2011). Cultural Mechanisms and the

Persistence of Neighborhood Violence. American Journal of Sociology, 116(4): 1190–1233